b&E Collective
Activist Proposes Blog
by Lia Gudaitis
Lia Gudaitis, like Chantal Brundage and Arlita MacNamee, was
part of the incoming MES cohort of Sept. 
2004, which formed the business & Environment
Collective. Lia developed and
maintained the Collective’s website, and since graduation has been mainly
working in
The Business & Environment Collective came about from a group of
enthusiastic students in the Business & Environment Diploma program at
FES. Though all of the founding members
have since graduated, many of us are working in green business and related
fields and are attempting to keep the spirit of the b&E alive by starting a
blog to replace our now defunct website and listserv. Anyone can visit the blog and write comments
(at http://becollective.blogspot.com/);
and people who are interested in posting to the blog can email <lia.gudaitis[at]gmail.com>
to become a blog author. Your energy and
enthusiasm will make the blog a useful resource for colleagues and people
interested in green business.
b&E Collective: Who
We Are
The b&E Collective is primarily a group of current and former Master
in Environmental Studies students at York University in Toronto, interested in
encouraging sustainability via environmental applications for businesses. We
encourage consumer and business participation in a new economy that reflects a
triple bottom line of Environmental, Social, and Economic responsibility.
Past Events
During the 2004-5 academic year, the business & Environment
Collective at FES was very active in organising events which benefited York and
our surrounding community. These events
included:
Signatures for the
“Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms for Clean Energy”
In November of 2004, b&E members
collected hundreds of signatures for the “Canadian Charter of Rights and
Freedoms for Clean Energy” in cooperation with our neighbours down south for
Energy Action day.
Holiday Shopping
Alternatives
In early December, the b&E
Collective held a bake sale and information session to present holiday consumer
alternatives which reflect environmentally- and socially-conscious alternatives
for holiday shopping.
Greening the Campus – Making York an Environmental Leader
On January 19th, 2005, the b&E
Collective helped launch the Student Network on Greening York University by
organising a panel discussion entitled “Greening the Campus – Making York an
Environmental Leader” where invited panellists representing FES and York
University’s administration discussed past, current, and future initiatives
aimed at greening York’s campus under the facilitation of FES PhD candidate
Nadine Gutz.
As a follow-up, we helped Andrew
Wilson, York University’s campus planner, in organising a planning and design
session for the York University Landscape Master Plan on March 11th, 2005. Some
of our members also took part in the York University Landscape Master Plan
Charette, providing our input on how to make York a leader in implementing
sustainability.
Oil on Ice
As part of Environmental Awareness
Week at York University, the b&E Collective screened the film Oil on
Ice on March 8th, “a vivid, compelling and comprehensive documentary
connecting the fate of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to decisions America
makes about energy policy, transportation choices, and other seemingly
unrelated matters.” This screening was organised to draw attention to MacKenzie
Gas Project in Canada’s north, a project which could prevent Canada from
meeting its Kyoto emission reduction targets.
Fossil Fool’s Day -
adopted a car dealership
For “Fossil Fool’s Day” on April
1st, 2005, b&E members adopted a car dealership by writing letters to
address our concern about protecting global security and preserving the
environment for our future generations. b&E then joined the Raging
Grannies, Toronto at a demonstration in front of a dealership on Yorkville
Avenue
Books and Beers
In addition to our higher profile
events, we have hosted “Books and Beers” evenings where we discuss a featured
book over beer, and we are also in the process of establishing stronger ties
between local organisations and students interested in doing research which
could directly help them.